Support Scouting

Support Scouting

Scouting makes a direct and positive impact on your community by teaching positive values and leadership skills to youth. Join the individuals, corporations, and foundations who support Scouting's mission.

Give 2 BSA

Membership in the Boy Scouts of America plays a major role in shaping lasting values and the use of these values in daily life. Take a stand on teaching character and integrity to the young people of our country by making a contribution to your local council today.

Planned Gifts

Suwannee River Area Council endowment ensures that Scouting will continue building character, fitness, and citizenship for years to come. Contact the Council Office at 850-576-4146 to find out about ways to plan a gift to the Suwannee River Area Council and the additional personal income and tax benefits your gift can create.

Who Pays for Scouting?

Youth Members

Assisted by their parents or guardians, boys in Cub Scouting, Boy Scouting, and Varsity Scouting and young men and women in Venturing pay their share from personal savings and participation in money-earning projects.

Members buy their own uniforms, handbooks, and personal equipment and pay their own camp fees.

Packs, Troops, Crews, Ships, Teams, and Posts

Weekly or monthly dues and funds from approved money-earning projects meet expenses for supplies and activities in the Cub Scout Pack, Boy Scout Troop, Varsity Scout Team, and Venture Crew. These monies help pay for camping equipment, registration fees, Boys' Life magazine, uniform insignia, special activities, and program materials.

Community Organizations

Each chartered organization using the Scouting program provides a meeting place and adult volunteer leadership for its BSA unit(s). The chartered organization and local council must approve unit money-earning projects before the launch of the project.

Suwannee River Area Council

Financial resources for the Suwannee River Area Council (the local nonprofit corporation chartered by the National Council) comes from an annual Friends of Scouting (FOS) campaign, local United Ways, foundation grants, special events, project sales, investment income, trust funds, bequests, and gifts of real and personal property.

These funds provide for professional staff supervision, organization of new Scouting units, service for existing units, training of volunteer leaders, and maintenance of council camps. They also finance the operation of the local council service center, where volunteer leaders can obtain literature, insignia, advancement badges, and other items vital to the program. In addition, the service center maintains advancement and membership records.

National Organization

Funds to support the national organization of the Boy Scouts of America come from registration fees, local council service fees, investment income, Scouting and Boys' Life magazines, sale of uniforms and equipment, contributions from individuals, and foundation grants. These monies help to deliver the program of the BSA (through four regional service centers and 297 local councils) to chartered organizations that use the Scouting program to meet the needs of their youth.